The Hornbeam Tree

Charlotte Nicholls has a secret that haunts her. She and three-year-old Chloe have left their home and friends, and are now building a new life for themselves elsewhere. All Charlotte wants to do is to forget the past, to blot out what went before, and to look only to the future. At last she and Chloe feel safe. Then, suddenly, their nightmare returns, and Charlotte finds she has no power to prevent what comes next…

Two lives. Two families. One tragedy.Lauren Scott is bright, talented and beautiful. At eighteen, she is the most precious gift in the world to her mother, and has a dazzling career ahead of her. Oliver Lomax is a young man full of promise, despite the shadow his own, deeply troubled, mother casts over him. Then one fateful night, Oliver makes a decision that tears their worlds apart.

It’s an early autumn day like any other as Miles Avery drives his wife, Jacqueline, to the station. There’s a smattering of rain in the air, the traffic is in its usual snarl, and the radio’s churning out the latest news. Nothing remarkable crops up in conversation, nor do either of them appear anything other than their normal selves. At the station Miles draws up just past the taxi rank. Jacqueline gets out, takes an overnight bag from the back seat, then turns towards the platforms. This is the last anyone sees of her.

Sometimes the choice is too hard to bear... Nikki Grant is only nineteen when she discovers she’s pregnant. Despite her parents’ disappointment and anger, she welcomes the news with joy. The baby will complete the happy home she shares with the man she adores, Spencer James. Baby Zac arrives and is perfect in every way. And with Spencer’s career taking off they are ready to make the big move to London. And then, on a day like any other, Nikki suddenly finds her life turned upside down by tragedy.

Leanne and her teenage daughter, Abby, have recently been forced to move from London back to Kesterley-on-Sea, to Ash Morley Farm, where Leanne grew up. Leanne's husband Jack, Abby's father, killed himself over a year ago, and the pair are still reeling from the shock waves caused by the tragedy. Also living at Ash Morley farm is Leanne's mother, Wilkie, who is a rock for everyone, and family friend Klaudia and her two children.

When Alicia Carlyle returns to the home of her childhood after the tragic death of her husband, she is hoping to put the past behind her. But first she must come face to face with the woman who nearly destroyed her marriage and tore her family in two - her sister-in-law, Sabrina. Their enmity runs deep, but Alicia is determined to make a fresh start for herself and her two children, Nathan and Darcie, and to heal her fractured relationship with her beloved brother.

Some secrets are too devastating to be told...When Natalie Moore is killed in a freak accident in France, her mother - the very poised and elegant Jessica - knows instinctively there is more to it. However, Natalie's father - the glamorous, high-flying Charlie - is so paralysed by the horror of losing his daughter that he refuses even to discuss his wife's suspicions. In the end, when their marriage is rocked by yet another terrible shock, Jessica decides to go back to France alone in search of some answers. When she gets to the idyllic vineyard in the heart of Burgundy, she soon finds a great deal more than she was expecting in a love that is totally forbidden and a truth that will almost certainly devastate her life. Set during one long hot summer in a sleepy world of wine, food and romance, "A French Affair" is a deeply sensual and passionate story of love, resistance, loyalty and betrayal.

Without a mother, Rosie is at the mercy of her father and thuggish brothers. Then one day a friend comes to the farm in the form of cockney housekeeper Heather Farley. But soon enough Heather vanishes, abandoning Rosie to her fate. Only when Thomas Farley comes to find his sister several years later does Rosie learn the terrible truth about Heather - and her family. Running away from home, she finds herself pursued by the man who brought ruin on her family. Is he out to get her, too? Or could he have some other reason for chasing her?

Lucy Winters’ parents have always been there for her. Loving, gentle and kind they have given her everything she could have wished for. Now, estranged from her husband, she has moved to the country to take over their thriving auction business. The moment she begins to prepare for her first sale she knows she’s made the right decision. And she dares to hope that at last she is living the life she has always dreamed of.

Charlotte Goodman is living the dream. Surrounded by family, friends and a stunning vineyard overlooking the ocean, it would be difficult for anyone to believe that she has a troubled past. However, haunted by the theft of a young girl, Charlotte begins to realise the enormity of something she did many years ago and soon finds herself having to make the most harrowing decision any woman would ever have to face.

Eva Montgomery is at the peak of her career when she is viciously attacked by a stalker. While still traumatised by the event she makes the biggest mistake of her life – one she can never turn back from. Sixteen years later, Eva has managed to rebuild her life in a way that seemed impossible after the attack. Her home in Dorset, high on the cliffs overlooking the sea, is as elegant as Eva herself, but bears none of the scars.

Alex Lake’s day job is all about helping people, especially children. She cares about them passionately and does everything in her power to rescue them from those who mean them harm. When the case of three-year-old Ottilie Wade comes to her attention, Alex finds herself completely unable to detach from the child the way she should. She feels an overpowering need to make a real difference in little Ottilie’s life, but no one is prepared to believe that Ottilie is in danger.

Sometimes the truth can be closer to home than you think. The compelling and moving new novel from the Sunday Times top-ten best-selling author of Behind Closed Doors, No Child of Mine, and Don't Let Me Go. Jenna and Jack Moore have moved their family to Wales for a fresh start. For vivacious, happy-go-lucky 15-year-old Paige, the future is full of promise. But suddenly everything changes. Paige becomes more and more withdrawn.

Scotland, 1995. On the hills of Cornton Vale Prison. She was convicted of killing her best friend.... Laura Brannigan has been put away for murder. She insists that she didn't kill Jackie. But her search for true justice seems futile. Then she receives a letter that takes her back to her youth and the memory of an old love, Stuart....

The powerful new novel from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Don't Let Me Go. Lainey Hollingsworth has spent her whole life on the outside of a secret. Her mother would never discuss the reasons she abandoned Italy when Lainey was a new born, nor has she ever stayed in touch with the family she left behind. Now Lainey’s mother is dead, taking the secret with her, and leaving Lainey free to find out about her roots.